Mornings with Jesus

1 min read

WRITING IS MY CALLING. EVEN without compensation, I would write. My latest book explores the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I wrote the first draft in 2005. Countless editors rejected it. Over ten years, I rewrote the manuscript no fewer than eig

Mornings with Jesus

1 min read

JESUS COMPLETELY PROVIDES FOR OUR needs. All of them. I stumbled over a reminder of that when rushing across campus during a conference. The terrain made the trek a challenge for my heart, lungs, legs, and the blister forming on my toe. As I pulled m

JOY Magazine

2 min read

At least 49 Christians have died in six attacks since 28 April. The city of Kaya alone sheltered 82 pastors and 1145 Christians from 151 households, displaced from various parts of the north. In many cases it is men who have been killed, leaving wido

60 Days of Prayer

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Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. REVELATION 3:20 (ESV) PRAYER IS A personal conversation with God. Your words, your feelings, your conversati

JOY Magazine

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Being under lockdown has been tougher than I expected: between juggling Zoom calls, managing staff remotely, and implementing new business plans; I have still tried to carve out some ‘extra time’. I believe it is in these ‘extra’ moments that we are

Mornings with Jesus

1 min read

THIS MORNING I WOKE UP to crazy headlines—again. Foreign wars and carnage. Refugees clamoring for safe haven. Political strife. Financial difficulties. Undercurrents of discontentment. I have been feeling as if I should chuck my phone straight out th

Mornings with Jesus

1 min read

THE MONTH OF OCTOBER IS bittersweet for me. It is sweet because my mother was born in October. October is bitter because Ray, my godson, died in a one-car accident on the first day of the month. He was twenty-five years old and served our city as a f

60 Days of Prayer

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He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” LUKE 22:41-42 (NIV) HAVE YOU EVER wanted something so desperately you prayed for a specifi

HOME MAGAZINE LEBANON

2 min read

Join Soeur Marana at MILADAK AHLA HDIYI Saturday December 20 at 7:30 pm At St. John Marc Cathedral in Byblos Presented by Saint Rafqa Children’s Choir. Directed by S. Marana Saad It took one year of deep thinking for Sister Marana to decide to leave

60 Days of Prayer

1 min read

He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. ISAIAH 40:29 (NLT) A FARMER WHO lives just a stretch down the road from me recently painted the word HOPE on his barn and every time I pass by, it lifts my spirits. With the coronavirus pand

Mornings with Jesus

1 min read

“WALK THIS WAY,” THE BUTLER said. Then he proceeded to limp his way noisily across a foyer. The visitor who followed did the same, mimicking his limp/stomp/limp/stomp, hunched over, listing-to-one-side posture. A classic comedic moment. Most credit t

JOY Magazine

2 min read

Where is God when things go wrong? I can just imagine how frequently this question must be asked. It is now 8 months down the lockdown line and Covid-19 seems to have lessened its devastation – we all hope and pray. When will we be able to fully live

Mornings with Jesus

1 min read

FOR THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS, one of my former students has been featured in a TV commercial promoting orthotic and prosthetic services. My first introduction to him was memorable for all the wrong reasons. As an elementary school librarian, I often re

Mornings with Jesus

1 min read

I GET LOST. A LOT. Even when I use my GPS, I often manage to take a wrong turn. My most recent adventure landed me on a dirt logging road blocked by a fallen tree, not quite sure where I went wrong. And as I listened to Madam GPS, her voice sounded t

60 Days of Prayer

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About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. ACTS 16:25 (NIV) IT’S EASY TO be happy when everything is going your way, but how you respond to dark and difficult times is a test

60 Days of Prayer

1 min read

Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this. PSALM 37:5 (NIV) SOMETIMES GOD’S HAND is evident, but do you trust the daily guidance of the unseen hand of God in your life? When you feel alone and become filled with doubt, pray. Beli

60 Days of Prayer

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“In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength....” ISAIAH 30:15 (NIV) WHEN YOU ARE on vacation, it can be hard to downshift from work and truly enjoy your time away. Recognize the importance of taking a break to

JOY Magazine

2 min read

Last month we laid my mother – Professor Serara Segarona SeleloKupe Mogwe – to rest after she transitioned to glory on Wednesday September 2, 2020. Tributes and posthumous awards came pouring in from around the world, speaking about the legacy that s

60 Days of Prayer

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But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. JOHN 14:26 NIV IF YOU ARE lacking a clear plan for your life, go before Jesus and pray. Let Him

60 Days of Prayer

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I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I have set my heart on your laws. I hold fast to your statutes, Lord; do not let me be put to shame. I run in the path of your commands, for you have broadened my understanding. PSALM 119:30-32 (NIV) TODAY AS W

Mornings with Jesus

1 min read

I MET MARGARET B. AT a mission hospital in Nepal in the eighties. By that time, she’d already served thirty years as a trained midwife. She was old enough to be my mother, yet she became my dear friend. Her love for people was one of the characterist

Literary Hub

3 min read

Hyacinth of Caeserea (Cappadocia, d. c. 120) In prison, the only food he was given was meat that had been consecrated to idols, which he refused to eat, and he starved to death. The jailers saw him comforted by angels. He was twelve. Hyacinth of Port

60 Days of Prayer

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We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. ROMANS 8:26 (NIV) NINETEEN YEARS AGO we experienced the heart-wrenching tragedy of September 11th. How comforting to know that God was with u

Mornings with Jesus

1 min read

WHEN MY CHILDREN WERE IN college and weary of school, I’d remind them to “finish strong.” The temptation to coast arose in the final semester. I understood their struggle, because years ago I went through the same impulse. I didn’t think I could face

JOY Magazine

2 min read

The Family sphere of influence has been under severe demonic attack for several generations. The Family is the cornerstone of society. When the original structure of God’s creation of families is altered, society begins to change exponentially. Troub

60 Days of Prayer

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And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” LUKE 12:15 (ESV) LIFE ISN’T A competition. The more you recognize that your journey is a beautiful

60 Days of Prayer

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But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. LUKE 5:16 (NIV) WHEN YOU FEEL alone or lonely reflect on the above verse. God invites you to turn to Him in prayer. He offers comfort and support. He will meet you in life’s lonely places and giv

60 Days of Prayer

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Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths. PSALM 25:4 (NIV) GOD WILL ALWAYS lead you on the right path. If you have wavered from His instructions, ask for forgiveness, take His hand and get back on track. When temptations threaten your faith jour

Mornings with Jesus

1 min read

WHENEVER I VISIT MY MOM, I love it when I can attend Sunday services with her. The minute I walk into the small country church, memories flood my mind. On the last visit, I remembered the time I sang a special duet with the only other girl my age in

Mornings with Jesus

1 min read

WHEN I WAS A YOUNG mother, there was always too much to do and too little time in which to do it. Between working, cleaning the house, running errands, cooking, doing the laundry, taking the children to their activities, and shopping, as well as bein